Anne of Green Gables · Chapter
A Good Imagination Gone Wrong explained
Spring arrives at Green Gables, and Anne revels in the beauty of Mayflowers and violets.
What happens
Spring arrives at Green Gables, and Anne revels in the beauty of Mayflowers and violets. She and Diana create a 'Haunted Wood' in a spruce grove, peopling it with ghosts and specters for romantic thrill. When Marilla sends Anne through the grove after dark to fetch a pattern, Anne's terror is real, and she learns a hard lesson about letting her imagination run wild. The chapter also marks the anniversary of Anne's arrival at Green Gables.
Themes in this chapter
Imagination and Creativity
Anne's vivid imagination creates the Haunted Wood, but its excess leads to real fear and a lesson in tempering fantasy with reality.
Nature and Beauty
The chapter opens with lush descriptions of spring—Mayflowers, violets, and blossoming orchards—highlighting Anne's deep connection to the natural world.
Growth and Education
Anne learns a hard lesson about the consequences of letting imagination run wild, marking a step in her moral and emotional growth.
Characters to notice
- Anne Shirley
Revels in spring beauty, creates the Haunted Wood with Diana, and is forced by Marilla to confront her fears by walking through it at night.
- Marilla Cuthbert
Suffers a headache, is sarcastic about Anne's mistakes, and firmly insists Anne walk through the Haunted Wood to cure her of imagining ghosts.
- Diana Barry
Anne's companion in creating the Haunted Wood and in gathering Mayflowers; she is away when Anne visits the Barry kitchen.
- Charlie Sloane
Dares Arty Gillis to jump over a well; his grandmother is cited as having seen a ghost.
- Prissy Andrews
Receives Mayflowers from Mr. Phillips, who quotes 'sweets to the sweet.'
- Ruby Gillis
Mentioned as a source of ghost stories.
Key passages
“I'm so sorry for people who live in lands where there are no Mayflowers”
Anne pities those who have never seen Mayflowers.
Reflects Anne's romantic appreciation of nature.
“There's such a lot of different Annes in me. I sometimes think that is why I'm such a troublesome person.”
Anne feels she has many conflicting sides to her personality.
Highlights Anne's self-awareness and internal complexity.
“I'll b-b-be cont-t-tented with c-c-commonplace places after this.”
Anne, shivering from fear, promises to appreciate ordinary places.
Shows the immediate impact of her frightening walk through the Haunted Wood.